Leonel Fernández Advocates for Regulations that Guarantee State Sovereignty and Migrant Rights

The former president of the Dominican Republic, Dr. Leonel Fernández, advocated for the establishment of national regulations that guarantee both state sovereignty and the rights of migrating peoples.

Fernández stressed the importance of keeping open avenues for multilateral dialogue, which allow for sharing experiences and establishing the values that must shape national legislation in the area of migration.

Similarly, the former
Dominican leader emphasized the importance of responsible, safe and orderly migration, as well as the implementation of policies that respond to objective and reliable data and not to rhetorical discourse bereft of scientific backing.

Also the president of the Global Foundation for Democracy and Development (GFDD), Dr. Fernández laid out his suggestions at the annual
meeting of the Academic Council on the United Nations System (ACUNS), an event that was held at LUISS University in Rome, Italy, with the theme “Human Rights, Migration, and Global Governance.”  He was invited by Alistair Edgar, the organization’s executive director.

In his lecture, the scholar and politician pointed out that 258 million people currently live in a country that is not their birth place nor state of citizenship. This fact
constitutes a major concern for international agencies working on the topic of migration.

In that regard, the former president gave an analysis regarding the political situation that currently exists in the United States and Europe as a response to the entry of migrants.

Dr. Fernández affirmed that in Europe, even though there was a significant increase in 2015, in the last few years the number of immigrants has decreased with the same
intensity.

Likewise in the United States, statistics reveal the lowest levels of the entry of new migrants since 2009, asserted the president of GFDD.

According to Fernández, the measures now being taken concerning immigration are a delayed response to the migratory crisis which took place in 2015.

At the meeting the former Dominican president shared the stage with an audience made up of academics from LUISS University, members of
ACUNS, politicians, diplomats and other figures.